Watching the Toronto Blue Jays and the Los Angeles Dodgers yesterday, I had a slight epiphany as a Vegas Golden Knights fan. No, it isn't that this World Series had a 2016 feel, where Tony Cordasco would call it #rigged (some would say that it felt like it, though). Instead, it concerned how the Golden Knights could get the job done themselves.
Of course, that meant relying on depth pieces to carry you throughout the next few seasons. You must go back to having 12 skaters score 10 or more points in the postseason. That way, you can overwhelm your opponents into oblivion. Jack Eichel can't be the only player scoring, you know.
Thinking about it, the Golden Knights are already one of the most hated teams around. They're in the same boat as the Kansas City Chiefs and the Dodgers. No, it isn't because of Jack Eichel looking like Patrick Mahomes, either.
As mentioned, the Golden Knights have one of the most structurally sound front offices in sports. Kelly McCrimmon operates similarly to Brett Veach and Andrew Friedman, making bold moves and reloading instead of rebuilding. It's made Vegas into the envy of the NHL world, with fans hating them for its very success.
The Vegas Golden Knights started with getting Mitch Marner on board
Of course, the ire of everyone came from the Golden Knights signing Mitch Marner. Locking one of the best NHL players in the league up to an eight-year deal worth $12 million AAV makes everyone hate your very existence. That's especially true when many people say that Marner would get more than Nathan MacKinnon.
Nathan MacKinnon!
It's also McCrimmon working his way around the LTIR rules with Mark Stone and other players. It got to the point where the NHL changed the rules in the latest CBA agreement because of it (actually, other NHL teams did it, too). The Golden Knights get in trouble and everyone else accuses Stone of faking his injuries.
But that's the thing with success. When fans can onto other teams like the Golden Knights, the Dodgers, and the Chiefs being successful, the haters come rolling in. It's become clockwork to hear stories of umpires and referees fixing games, especially in today's hyper-gambling sports world. That also comes with other bizarre subplots, such as Taylor Swift being a psyop and Mark Stone intentionally cutting his spleen.
That leaves Vegas with the "golden" (waka waka) opportunity to etch its status as a bona fide hated team. The Golden Knights can win back-to-back Stanley Cups and become the league's top dog once again, starting with this season. After all, you can't win Stanley Cups without having solid players like Stone, Tomas Hertl, and William Karlsson on board.
So, let's make the magic happen, Vegas. Let's put the Golden Knights in the same category as the Dodgers and the Chiefs with back-to-back Stanley Cups. That way, you can establish yourself as the modern NHL dynasty, taking said status away from the Florida Panthers.